Heel-building machine.



C. W. .BOWEN.

HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. B 1917.

1 ,288,490. Patented Dec. 24, 1918.

6 SHEETSSHEET I.

6, W. BOWEN.

HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8. 1917.

Patented Dec. 24, 1918.

6 SHEETSSHEET 2.

j m Mm c. w. BOWEN. HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FlLED MAR.8.1917.

1 ,288,490. Patented Dec. 24, 1918.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

C. W. BOWENI HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. s. 19!].

1,288,490. Patented Dec. 24, 1918.

6 SHEETSSHEET 4.

Jam?? 12-: "cum: Plrxns 0. I-Nmuyng. msumunw. a c

C. W. BOWEN.

HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

Mwucmom FILED MAR. a. 191:.

I Patented Dec. 24 1918;

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

C. W. BOWEN.

HEEL BUILDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. a. 1911.

1 ,288,49U. Patented Dec. 24, 1918.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 6.

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CHARLES W. BOWEN, 0F LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A COR- PORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

HEEL-BUILDING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Original application filed December 9, 1912. Serial No. 735,750. Divided and this application filed March 8,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES lV. Bownx, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Heel-Building lifachines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to a machine for :torming or building shoe-heels, by the superposition of lifts or layers of sheet-material. More particularly, the invention relates to a heel-building machine in which the lifts or layers are cut by the machine from strips or sheets of material as fast as they are required for, and used in, the formation of the lnael-piles.

One object of the present invention is to produce a machine of the kind in question, in which novel means are employed, preferably in connection with the means for cutting the heel-lifts as aforesaid, for assembling the lifts into heel-piles. To this end the invention comprises novel means for superposing and assembling heel-lifts which, when combined with cutting-devices, act after each operation of said devices. More specifically, it comprises cutting means which are so moved after each cutting operation, as to constitute transferring-devices, by which the cut lifts are placed one above another in the path of movement of an assembling device.

Other objects of the invention, and the features of construction and operation by which they are attained, will be set forth in connection with the following description of the illustrated embodiment of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side-elevation of a machine embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is plan-View of the machine, with the upper portion of the lift-cutting mechanism broken away;

Fig. is arear-elevation of the machine; Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the machine on the line -ll in Fig. 2, but with the pasting and nailing mechanisms and the lift-receiving hoppers removed; Fig. 5 is a vertical Serial No. 153,441.

sectional view of one of the cutting-dies and associated parts, on a larger scale than the other figures; Fig. 6 is a plan-view of certain details of the strip-feeding mechanism; Fig. 7 is a plan-view of a portion of the same mechanism; Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view on the line 88 in Fig. 7 Fig. 9 is a sectional view on the line 99 in Fig. 1., showing particularly the assemblingmechanism; Fig. 10 is a similar view of a modified form of the assembling-mechanism; and Fig. 11 is a detail-view of the cam for actuating the nailing-mechanism.

The invention is illustrated as embodied in a machine comprising a framework 1, upon which a horizontal feed-table 2 is mounted. This table supports a series of strips 3 of sheet-material (Fig. 2), from which the heellifts are to be cut. These strips, which may be formed for a preliminary cuttingoperation from sheets of leather-board or other suitable material, are preferably, for the sake of economy, of widths equal, respectively, to the lengths of the heel-lifts to be cut therefrom. Each strip is guided between a pair of guide-barsei, fixed on the table 2 and forming a channel in which the strip may move. The guide-bars are secured adjustably in place by means of screws 5 passing through slotted lugs 6 on the bars, so that the width of the channel formed by each pair of bars may be varied in accordance with the width of the strip to be accommodated.

The table is continuous with a beam 8 which is provided with dove-tailed sockets in which cutting-blocks 7 are seated (Figs. at and 6), and upon these cutting-blocks heellifts are cut from the strips, by means of while the waste-material is carried, by the next feed-movement of the strips, to the rear of the cutting-blocks, where it falls through a space provided for that purpose, as shown in Fig. 4. The number of dies 9 used in the machine, in forming the heelpiles of any given style, is equal to the entire number of lifts required in the heel-pile, and where the heel-pile is to be used in making a heel with beveled lateral surfaces the sizes of the dies'are graded accordingly, as shown in Fig. 2.

The die-carrier comprises a beam 10, above, and parallel with which is a plate 12. This plate is supported 'by springs 13 resting upon the beam and surrounding guidestems 14 which are fixed in the beam and pass loosely through openings in the plate,

leads at the upper ends of the guide-rods determine the normal raised position of the plate. In order that the dies, may be removed and interchanged according to the sizes of the heel-piles to be cut, each die is inserted loosely in one of a series of open ings 17 in the plate 12, and is supported therein by a collar 15 which surrounds the die and is secured adjustably in place by a set-screw. The collar is provided with notches 18, which are engaged by lugs 15) on the plate 12, to correctly position-the die. The collar 15 may be adjusted on the die to regulate the height of the lo-werextremity of the die, as it is worn away in sharpening.

The dies are all depressed against the cutting-blocks by the operation of a cutterbeam 20, arranged to slide, at lts ends, in uprights 21 upon the frame of the machine. The cutter-beam is actuated by two rods pivoted to its ends, the lower ends of the rods being provided with rollers 23 engaging grooves in twocams 5, which are mounted upon the opposite ends of a camshaft 24; ournaledhorizontally in the frame 1. The cam-shaft is actuated by any suitable connections with a source of power.

The cutter-beam does not directly engage the dies, but is provided with a series of plates 26, which are connected adjustably with the beam by threaded studs 27 The studs project upwardly from each plaalte through holes in the beam, and are secured in place therein by nuts 28 and 29 threaded on th stems. Each plate 26 operates one of the dies, and the adjustable mounting of the plates permits them to be independently adjusted so that the dies nvill all be engaged simultaneously and depressed through therequired distance, regardless of variations in the lengths of the dies. VVhenthe dies are depressed by the plates 26 the springs yield so as to permit the plate 12 to descend, and when the cutter-beam rises the springs raise the plate again, together with the dies, the cut lifts remaining within the lower ends of the dies.

The dies are used as means for transferring the cut lift-s from the points at which they are cut to the lift-assembling means, For this purpose the ends of the beam 10 are fixed to slides which move in horizontal. guideways 30 on the frame of the machine,

and thus the entire die-carrier with the dies may be moved reanwardly. This movement is produced by means comprising two bell-crank levers 31, connected with the ends of the carrier by links 32. 1 The levers are loosely pivoted on the shaft 37, and they have rearwardly projecting arms 33 carrying rollers 34, which engage grooves 35 in two similar cams 36, mounted on the cam; shaft 24.

During the rearward ZIlOi GIHGHtMOT the die-carrier, just described, the strips 3 are fed rearwardly through spaces approximately equal to the length of'material con sumed in the production of a set of lifts The means employed for this purpose are shown particularly in Flgs. 2, 6, 7 and 8.

Alongside each of the channels-formed by the guide-bars & the table is provided with a slot having guideways in which a feed-- slide 38 moves. Each slide 38 is provided with a horizontal stud extending laterally over the corresponding strip 3, and upon I this stud a feed-dog 42 is mounted, a spring 43 being also mounted on the stud and engaging the dog so as to swing it downwardly into operative engagement with the strip The slide 38 has a depending arm 40, and a v spring: 4-5, interposed between the armand a member 65 of the frame of the machine, presses the arm forwardly so as to retain the slide normally in its foremost position,

as shown particularly in 8.

The feed-slides are given their rearward operative movements by means of the same cam-mechanism which actuates the-die-carrier. For this purpose each of the arms 4O is provided with a screw 44, and a crossbar t6 is mounted upon the lever arn131yin pos1t1on to engage the screws 14 when the arms 31 swing rearwardly as before described. The eix'tent of the operativemove ment imparted to each-feed-slide depends upon the adjustmentof the screw 44, which is made to project more or less in frontof the arm 40 according as a longer or shorter feed-movement to be imparted to the corresponding strip.

In Fig; 7 the 1. several screws are shown as adjusted in accordance discharged from the dies by means showir.

particularly in Figs. 4. and 5. Inclosed withln each die us an ejector in the form of a plate 50, which is fixed to a stem 51 arranged to slide vertically in guide-plates'52 and 53 mounted adjustably within the die. A spring 54 bears against the lower guideplates 52 and against a collar 55 secured on the stem 51, and this spring acts to retain theejector normally in raised position, thus leaving a space 56, .within the die and below the ejector, to admit the cut lift.

The ejectors are actuated by a series of arms 57 fixed to a rock-shaft 58 which turns in uprights 59 at the sides of the frame 1 of the machine. The arms 57 are so spaced that each arm enters an opening 60 in the side of the corresponding die, upon the rearward movement of the latter, and when this occurs the beveled end of the arm 57 proj ects over the beveled upper end of the stem 51. The shaft 58 is provided, near its ends, with depending arms 61, and the beam 10 is provided with lugs 62 which engage the arms 61 when the carrier nearly reaches the end of its rearward movement, thus rocking the shaft 58 and causing the arms 57 to press the stems 51 downwardly, thereby causing the ejectors to discharge the lifts. The parts are returned to their normal position by springs 63 which bear against the arms 61 and against lugs 64: on the frame of the machine, while the forward movement of the arms 61 is limited by suitable stops, as shown in Fig. 2.

The lifts are assembled upon a bed 65, and in order to position them correctly for the assembling operation each lift, when discharged from the die, in the form of the machine illustrated particularly in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 9, falls into a hopper 66, in which it is temporarily supported at the proper distance above the assembling bed, (except in the case of the first hopper, i. e. the righthand end-most hopper in Fig. 9) upon flanges 72 within the hopper.

The lifts are assembled by means of an assembling-finger 69, which is arranged to move through a transverse slot 67 in the assembling-bed, and into and through the lower parts of the hoppers 66, each hopper being provided with notches, 68 through which the finger may move between the flanges 72.

The assembling-finger 69 is mounted upon the upper end of a post 70 which slides vertically in a carriage 71. This carriage moves on horizontal guideways 96, on the frame of the machine, for the purpose of causing the finger to traverse the row of hoppers. The movement of the finger, beginning at the right-hand side as shown in Fig. 9, causes it to engage the lift in the first hopper, which will constitute the lowermost lift of the heel-pile, and to slide this lift out from the bottom of the hopper along the assembling-bed and into position directly beneath the lift which is supported on the flanges 72 in the second hopper. By the continued movement of the finger the process is repeated with the two lifts so assembled, thus adding to the pile each of the lifts in the successive hoppers.

. The carriage 71- is moved by means comprising a cable 74, of which the ends are connected to opposite sides of the carriage. This cable passes around guide-pulleys 75 and 76, and is lapped once around a driving-drum 77. The drum is fixed on a shaft 78 which turns in uprights 79, and a pinion on the shaft 78 meshes with a segmental gear 81 which oscillates upon a pivot 82. A link 83 connects the segmental gear with a crank-arm 84, which is revolved by a horizontal shaft 85. This shaft is connected, by bevelgears 86 and 87, with the cam-shaft The operation of the mechanism just described causes the carriage 71 to reciprocate forth and back once during each rotation of the cam-shaft, and thus at each operation of the mechanism the assembling-finger 69 collects all of the lifts which have been cut by the dies in their last preceding cycle of operations.

In order to cause the finger to rise in proportion to the increasing height of the pile of heel-lifts collected by it, the post 70 is provided with rollers 92 which engage cams 73 mounted on the frame of the machine on opposite sides of the path of movement of the post. When the rollers reach the end of the cams 73 they fall into engagement with a pair of lower cams or guides 89 which support the post during its returnmovement, at a height such that the assembling-finger is depressed below the surface of the assembling-bed, so as not to interfere with the lifts which may be deposited in the hoppers from the dies at this time. At the righthand ends of the cams 89 the rollers are lifted by inclined portions 94, and they pass pivoted gates 95 which fall into closed position behind the rollers, so as to direct them, at their next left-hand movement, upon the cams 73. The rollers 92 are held firmly down against the cams 73 and 89 by means of a spring 93 (Fig. 4-), which is contained in a recess in the post 70 and seated against a. suitable abutment on the car riage 71.

The machine is shown as provided with a magazine 88, located in line with, but beyond the hoppers 66. This magazine may be filled with top-lifts, one or more of which will be withdrawn at each passage of the assembling-finger and added to the pile.

The assembled lifts may be secured together either by cement or by nails or by both, and the machine is shown as provided with means for securing them in both ways. Adjacent to each hopper 66 is a paste-brush. 97 which is located, during the assemblingoperation, in position to engage the upper surface of the lift as it emerges from the hopper when discharged by the asemblingfinger. In this way each lift is provided with paste'by which the neXt lift deposited thereon is caused to adhere. The pastebrushes are supplied with paste by means of a series of supply-rollers 98 (Figs. 2 and 8) located at the rear of the machine. The brushes are carried by arms projecting forwardly from a beam 105 which is fixed, at its ends, to slides which move in the guideways 30. The beam is connected with the diecarrier so that'when the latter moves rearwardly the brushesare carried into position to engage the respective rollers 98, from which they wipe a sufficient quantity of paste. 7

The supply-rollers 98 dip into a supply of paste in a tank 99, and the trunnions of the rollers are connected together by sprocket-wheels and a. chain 101, while a second chain 102' connects them with the shaft 104; on which the guide-pulley 76 is fixed, so that the rollers are rotated to keep their surfaces moist with paste.

When the heel-pile is completed the lifts may be additionally secured together by a nail driven through them, and the machine is shown as provided with nailing-mechanism for-this purpose, this mechanism'being located beyond the magazine 88. The na1l ing-mechanism is not particularly described as it may be of any ordinary or suit-able.

character, for example, like that shown in United States Patent No. 1,146,996, granted July 20, 1915,.to the present applicant. As shown, the nailing-mechanism comprises a nail-magazine 106 from which the nails are fed, through a raceway 107, to the usual nailing-block or die, from which they are driven into the heel-pile. The nail-driver is actuated by a rod 108 which slides vertically in bearings on the frame of the machine. The downward operative movement of the rod* is produced by a spring 109 acting against a collar on the rod, while the idle return-movement of the rod is produced by means of a cam 110 on a countershaft 112. This cam engages a roller 111 on the lower end of the rod 108, and the cam is so shaped, as shown in Fig. 11, as to give a gradual rise and a free and quick drop. The countershaft 112 is connected, by sprocket-wheels and a chain 113, with the cam-shaft 24.

The assembling-mechanism, including the hoppers 66, the finger 69, and the actuatingmechanism for the latter, constitute particularly an embodiment of the invention described and claimed in an application filed December 9, 1912, Serial-No. 735,7 50, by the present applicant, of which the present application is a division, and the present 1nvention is embodied particularly in the modified. form of assembling-mechanism shown in Fig. 10. In the operation of this mechanism each heel-lift, after the first, is deposited, from the die directly on a partly formed pile of llftSWlllCll has already been deposited upon the assembling-bed. In'this modified construction, furthermore, the set of lifts produced at one operation of the dies is not assembled in a single heel-pile, but each of the lifts so produced constitutes an element of a different one of a series of heelpiles which are simultaneously in'proce'ss of formation.

In the construction now under discussion a-series of assembling-fingers 69 are employed, these fingers being equal in number to the dies, and similarly spaced. The fingers are fixed in a carriage 71 which is reciprocated, at each cycle of operations, through a distance equal to the spaces be tween adjacent dies. WVhen the lifts are discharged from' the dies each lift fallsbeside one of the fingers, and the subsequent movement 'of the fingers, from right to left, trans fers the entire series of lifts simultaneously, so as to move each lift from the point in line with one die to the point in line with the next successive die. operative movements the fingers are depressed'below the surface of the assemblingbed andare carried back beneath the lifts to their original right-hand position, where they again rise inreadiness for vanother operation. In this way the lowermost lift discharged by the die at the right-hand end of the series is moved to a'position beneatlrthe second die, where a second lift is deposited upon it, and the incipient pile is then transferred from point to point, receiving an additional lift during each dwell in its movement. I The movements of the fingers which have ust been described are produced by mechanism actuated by a cam 84, which is mounted 111 the same general position as the drum 77 in the previously described structure, and may be actuated by similar or any suitable means. This cam actuates a cam-lever 8 1", which is provided with a gear-segment 8 1 meshing with a rack on the bottom of a sub-carriage 71 The sub-carriage is supported by rollers 120 near its ends, which rest upon horizontal tracks on a slide 118, this slide being arranged to move in horizontal guideways on the frame of the machine in substantially the same way in which the carriage 71 is supported and guided in the structure shown in' Fig. 9. The movement of the slide is yieldingly resisted by a friction-device 122, connected with the slide and engaging the lower surface of one of the guideways. The carriage 71 is supported by a sub-carriage, being provided with rollers 115, near its ends, which cooperate with cam-surfaces 116 on the sub-carriage. The studs upon which the rollers 115 turn engage vertical slots 123 in upwardly-projecting portions of the slide 118, so that the carriage is prevented from Aftereach of such I moving longitudinally with relation to the slide.

Assuming the parts to be in the position shown in Fig. 10, the cam Se causes the lever Set to swing from right to left, whereby a lefthand movement is imparted to the sub-carriage 71". During the first part of this movement the rollers 120 move idly over the slide 118, which latter is held stationary by the friction-device 122. In this way the cam-surfaces 116 are caused to move relatively to the rollers 115, thus raising these rollers and the carriage 71 and raising the assembling-pins 69 through the slot in the assembling-bed, so as to bring them into cooperative relation with the lifts and heel-piles on the table. This relative movement of the sub-carriage and the carriage terminates when the rollers 115 are engaged by abutments 117 at the ends of the cam-surfaces, these abutments causing the rollers to be moved positively from right to left, thus carrying the slide 118 along its guideways notwithstanding the resistance of the friction-device 122. Accordingly, at this time the assembling-pins are moved from right to left, thus producing their operative action upon the heelpiles. When this operative movement completed and the direction of motion of the cam-lever 84 is reversed, the slide 118 remains momentarily at rest while the subearriage is moved from left to right sufficiently to cause the rollers 120 to move into engagement with stop-lugs 121 on the slide. During this relative movement of the subcarriage and the carriage the latter descends, and the parts then move as a whole back to the position shown in Fig. 10, thus completing their cycle of operations.

With the form of mechanism just de scribed it is unnecessary to provide any means for supporting the lifts above the assembling-bed, but side-guides 124 may be provided for alining the superposed lifts correctly. These guides may be in the form of plates or the like fixed on the assemblingbed at each side of the line of travel of the piles. Similar side-guides may be used also in the construction shown in Fig. 9. .No means for applying paste to the lifts is shown in Fig. 10, but it will be understood that such means may have substantially the same form as those illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.

It should be noted that the term lift, as used throughout this specification and the following claims. is employed in an inclusive sense, to indicate any blank capable of being utilized in building heels irrespective of the particular form or character which the blank may have when first as sembled with others in the form of a heel ile.

p The invention is not limited to the embodiment thereof hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, but it may be embodied in various other forms within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed as new, is:

1. A heel-building machine comprising cutting-mechanism operable to cut a series of separate heel lifts from sheet material; means for actuating said cutting-mechanism to cut successive series of lifts; lift-assembling means; mechanism for mo ring said assembling-means in a predetermined path after each operation of the cutting-mechanism; and means for depositing the lifts in such path one upon another.

A heel building machine comprising lift-assembling means; mechanism for moving said assembling-means in a predetermined path; lift-cutting means; mechanism for actuating said lift-cutting means to cut successive series of heel-lifts from sheet-material; and means for moving said cuttingmeans to transfer the series of lifts to said assembling-means and place said lifts one over another in the path of movement of the assembling-means;

3. A heel-building machine comprising a stationary support; a series of devices arranged to engage, successively, a partially formed heel-pile resting on the support and to slide the pile intermittently along the support; and means for adding a heel-lift to the pile in each of its positions of rest on the support.

4:. A heel-building machine comprising a stationary support; a carriage provided with a series of fingers; means for imparting to said carriage movements toward and from said support, and intermediate movements lengthwise of the support, whereby the fingers are moved into and out of engagement with a series of partially formed heel-piles on the support and caused to advance the heel-piles intermittently along the support;

a and means for adding a heel-lift to each pile in each of its positions of rest on the support.

5. A heel building machine having, in combination, a stationary support having a longitudinal slot therein; a series of devices below the support and movable upward through said slot to engage, successively, a partially formed heel-pile resting on the support; means to move said devices upwardly and then intermittently slide the pile along the support; and means to add a heellift to the pile in each of its positions of rest on the support.

6. A heel building machine having, in combination, a stationary support; a carriage provided with a series of fingers; a subearriage on which said carriage is sustained. constructed to cause the fingers to move toward and from the support when said sub-carriage is reciprocated longitudinally thereof,

to hold the fin gers in their advanced positions during the latter portion of said longitudinal movement in one direction, and to hold the fingers in their retracted position during the latter portion .of said movement in the other direction; whereby the fingers are moved into and out of engagement with a series of partially formed heel piles on the support and caused to advance the heel piles intermittently along the support; means for reciprocating said sub-carriage longitudinally of the support; and means for adding a heel lift to each pile in each of its positions of rest on the support.

7. A heel building machine comprising means to deposit a series of lifts in a row spaced apart at separate stations, lift assembling means constructed and arranged to engage individually each of the lifts in the row, and means for operating said assembllng means to engage sald lifts and advance them simultaneously from one station to another While maintaining their spaced relation.

8. A heel building machine comprising lift assembling means constructed and arranged to engage individually each of a series of lifts arranged in arow spaced apart at separate stations, means for successively depositing l'OWS of lifts in position to be engaged by said assembling means, and means for causing the assembling means to advance all of said lifts simultaneously from one station .to another, operating in the periods between-the successive lift depositing operations.

CHARLES W. BOWEN.

lopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of-ol ltoltl. Washington, D. 0." 

